Devotions for February 3, 2016

Wednesday: Love does not envy… it is not self-seeking (1 Corinthians 13:4, 5).

            Lack of envy is another characteristic of love. I can think of three ways that can play out. First, it means that love takes joy in another person’s good fortunate. I told the story this weekend of friends who were reluctant to tell us that they were pregnant for a second time because they knew that we were not yet pregnant for the first time. (In a way, that, too, is love—consideration for our feelings). But we assured them that we shared their joy, without any jealousy. Imagine a person who’s lost a loved one to heart disease rejoicing that another had successful bypass surgery. That’s lack of envy; that’s love. Such a joy comes from a place of deep contentment. That’s the second way this plays out. When you look at your life and say, “This is the life God has given me and it is enough,” then you can look at someone else’s good fortune without envy. Finally, because love is content, it feels no need to draw attention to itself. So, love is not self-seeking.